Sources and method

Where the numbers come from

• Ford: the annual RV & Trailer Towing Guide (PDF), in both its US and Canadian editions.
• GM (Chevrolet, GMC): the annual Trailering Guide (PDF) and per-model trailering charts.
• Ram: the Towing Charts (PDF) published on the Stellantis media site.
• Jeep and Dodge: the specification sheets published on the Stellantis media site.
• Toyota: the per-model specification data published on toyota.com.
• Honda: the model specification releases published on the Honda newsroom.
• Make, model and model-year enumeration and VIN decoding: NHTSA vPIC.

Process

1. Only documents on a fixed allow-list are downloaded; each is archived with a checksum and date.
2. Tables are extracted one row per manufacturer row. Rows are never merged or averaged.
3. Each extractor is checked against the rendered source pages before its rows are published, and every row records who approved it and when.
4. Rows are cross-checked against a second published document — normally the same manufacturer's guide for another market, such as the Canadian edition. Agreement is marked “✓ 2 sources” beside the figure; a figure without that mark comes from one document; disagreements are held back, never averaged. Both documents come from the manufacturer, so agreement means the figure was published consistently, not that it was measured twice.
5. Where a source gives only GCWR and curb weight, the difference is shown as “derived”, visually separate, and is never used as a rating or in ranked tables.
6. Hitch class is computed from the trailer rating. Nothing else is inferred.

What overrides this site

Your vehicle's certification label (driver's door jamb) and its owner's manual. Ratings assume a properly equipped vehicle; the row states the equipment. Manufacturers change guides mid-year; the retrieval date tells you which version a figure came from.

See also: glossary · affiliate disclosure · terms.